Celebrations were either hidden or barely noticeable. Instead, tears were visible, streaming down the faces of players like fullback Lawrence Vickers and guard Nate Livings. One player pumped his fists; another bowed his head; another walked, stone-faced.

"A sad, sad day for everyone all-around," said running back DeMarco Murray, who gained 53 yards, including the 6-yarder around right end that secured the key first down with 24 seconds left and spurred Bailey's attempt. "We won, but it doesn't feel like that. It was hard in the locker room. Hearing coach (Jason) Garrett speak. Looking at guys' faces with tears coming down. It was hard to be focused mentally, but we pulled through."

When the Cowboys boarded the plane back to Texas on Sunday night, it was just the beginning of their grieving process. Nothing has healed; nothing is over. The emotions are too complex for that. Everything about the past two days is complex. Efforts to draw dramatic conclusions about handling adversity were minimized. What happened for three hours Sunday was football -- nothing compared to what was happening in life. Owner Jerry Jones viewed it as "a respite" for the team -- nothing more, nothing less. He was proud of the effort. They had gone to work amid tragedy and finished out the day.

The lines were drawn sharply by Garrett when he addressed the team. The players took a break from dealing with one of the most trying situations they've known to play a game and attempt to honor a friend who had passed. The performance, as impressive as it was, didn't bring back Brown or free Brent from the burden of an incident he said will haunt him forever.

It was this message from Garrett that struck the right chord:

"I talked about how football is very different than life," Garrett said after the win. "I made it clear that this is a life situation, and we lost a 25-year-old young man who had his whole life in front of him. He was a teammate and a friend. All we asked our team last night was to understand what happened and to somehow channel their emotions into honoring Jerry today. It was a hard thing to do. Football is a game of emotion, and somehow we had to process it all and do our job today. ... The win was nice. But to play and do their job was just as nice."

Within minutes of the game ending, Garrett was on the phone with Brown's mother, promising her the game ball. Jerry Jones had already spoken with her twice that day to set up Tuesday's memorial service. Tight end Jason Witten pondered the vision of Brown's mom watching the game and said, "If, for just a moment, we could put a smile on her face in the grieving process, that's what it's all about."

Yet the thoughts were so deep, so convoluted -- hurting for the loss of one teammate, hurting in a different way for another teammate whose life will never be the same. Vickers captured the emotion in a tearful moment at his locker, thanking Brown for watching over them, and also offering a prayer for Brent.

Vickers cried before the game. He cried during the game. ("Can you imagine crying before every play?" he said.) He cried after the game. Asked how he focused on the game, he said he simply didn't know. "I played the game emotionally drained," he said. Asked what he learned about his own performance and that of the team, he said, "It's what I already knew: That I'm our brother's keeper. And I'm not the only person that felt this. This is a moment in time that I'll never forget."

Vickers simply appreciated getting time away from the pain.

"This is what I needed," Vickers said. "With that on my mind, to play the game is what I needed. I don't think me sitting in a room helps. I needed this to occupy my mind. At the same time, we were able to find some good in a bad situation."

Often, football is described using life metaphors. A play was "kept alive." A win was "heart-stopping." There were no metaphors on Sunday. Pressed to find meaning, Vickers said he couldn't put it into words.

Cowboys 20, Bengals 19

Check out the best photos from the Week 14 matchup between the
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Quarterback Tony Romo, who completed 25 of 43 passes for 268 yards with a touchdown and an interception, tried to describe his celebratory thoughts. Instead, Romo said he kept thinking of Brown's life and of Brent's plight. He said that, while the public didn't see him much, Brown embodied what you'd want in a football player.

"That's what you think about," Romo said. "You consistently go back to that, even in the tough moments out there -- the adverse situations. At the same time, (thinking about) the positives and the win. You kind of sit back and think about him, and you think about Josh and the tough situation that he's obviously in now. It's a hard, hard situation. There's no playbook for this sort of thing in life."

There were some football developments. How the defense, playing at one point with fewer than half of its starters from opening day, stood tall by allowing just two field goals in the second half. How Dez Bryant shook off a sprained finger to catch a clutch, 27-yard touchdown pass with 6:35 left. How defensive coordinator Rob Ryan dialed up a quirky defense on third-and-4 with 4:40 remaining, getting a sack from Anthony Spencer that gave the Cowboys the ball back for the last time. But it all happened because the team showed up to work. Somehow.

"The core group of guys kept everyone focused, and that's what teams do," said Witten, who had 62 receiving yards. "People have questioned the leadership throughout the years, but people have stepped up. We handled it the right way, keeping perspective that that's real life."

I did think -- and I still think -- the selection of Cousins in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL Draft was one of the smartest things the 'Skins did. Maybe not as smart as engineering the RG3 trade, but nearly. Why? Because teams need good players. And if you're a team with good receivers, a good running game and solid tight ends, you need a quarterback. And because running quarterbacks like RG3 sometimes get hurt.

"We haven't done anything," Gonzalez said in early November. "We get to the playoffs and we've lost. I understand why they're not making that big of a deal. But we go out there and keep doing what we're doing, eventually they will take notice."

The Falcons got noticed on Sunday, losing 30-20 to the raggedy Carolina Panthers and Cam Newton, whose team had entered the game full of trash talk and vigor and left with much more. Sure, it was just Atlanta's second loss, and sure, everyone loses. But it was another example of a team taking the fight to the Falcons, and the Falcons letting it happen. It sparked all the same concerns about the lack of physicality and toughness, the stuff that helps teams thrive in the playoffs.

Atlanta couldn't run the ball (35 yards), for instance, and allowed the Panthers to do it all day (195 yards). Gonzalez and the rest are right: We're still left thinking this regular season doesn't mean much. They're paper tigers until they prove otherwise.

Who else are the Giants hiding?

I'm well past the point of ignoring the New York Giants' injury report. I don't care who is injured, who isn't, who is starting or who is on the bench. Tom Coughlin's team just plugs another guy in there to do the job as well as -- or better than -- the man he's replacing, and off they go.

All he did in his real debut was rush for 100 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries, and race 97 yards on a kickoff return for another score. Ho hum. Just 327 all-purpose yards in a coming-out party. This was the guy on the Giants' bench. This was the guy receiver Victor Cruz called "the most athletic on the team." And he barely played before Sunday.

It's one facet that makes the Giants one of the NFL's model franchises.

Some rapid-fire takes:

» The New York Jets' offense was its usual snoozing self, the game was being played in Jacksonville, and quarterback Mark Sanchez was barely getting it done. And yet? No Tim Tebow. Apparently, unless he's the last quarterback standing, he's not playing. Tebow can put a bright face on it all he wants, but those who talk to him can sense the disappointment. He still feels like he's good enough to start. Yet his window appears shut.

» Has the message from Cleveland Browns coach Pat Shurmur -- five wins in Cleveland's last eight games -- been received by new owner Jimmy Haslam?

» I don't know whether to be impressed or disgusted with the Panthers. Few players are as stunningly impressive as Cam Newton, and that brash, cocky team showed it can play with anybody by dropping the Falcons, 30-20. So, what happened the rest of the season? I can't figure out if Sunday's result makes me more or less impressed with coach Ron Rivera.

» More good numbers for Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles, who finished 32 of 51 for 381 yards and directed two touchdown drives in the final eight minutes. Oh, and a win! The assignment isn't easy for the Eagles' personnel department, which must decide whether Foles is the franchise quarterback of the future. Maybe those folks are learning.

» Just when people want to talk about St. Louis Rams quarterback Sam Bradford's stunted growth, he'll turn in another fourth-quarter comeback, just like last year. His potential is still considerable, if the team can ever harness it.

» Say what you want about Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano, but his innovative and outside-the-box kickoff plan was so interesting that Commissioner Roger Goodell mentioned it to TIME magazine. Schiano takes the same open-minded approach to his football team. Often, conventional wisdom is just tired and easy. Eventually, people will realize this guy knows what he's talking about. It's one reason he's a good bet to eventually turn that team around.